Tori Amos

Abnormally Attracted To Sin (Universal Republic)

By Adrienne Urbanski
Published: May 20th, 2009 | 7:00am

I’ll be honest with you: I wasn’t entirely excited about the prospect of a new Tori Amos album. Though over the course of her career, she has created undeniably groundbreaking, heart-wrenching, skillful masterpieces, I had a feeling that her steam was beginning to run out. Amos’ last successful album was 2001’s Strange Little Girls, in which she ingeniously reworked songs of misogynistic and sexist songs, giving them new twists and spins. The albums that came to follow — Scarlet’s Walk, The Beekeeper, and American Doll Posse — all seemed to lack the grit and passion that was so markedly apparent on earlier albums. While these records undoubtedly proved Amos still capable of producing skillful work, they offered little that was genuinely fresh and compelling.

Here, on Abnormally Attracted To Sin, the orange-haired chanteuse once again shows the powerful sound that rendered her worthy of a fanatical following. Unlike some previous albums, this one shows a vast range in style and tone — not centering around a singular concept or theme — showing the gamut of Amos’ abilities (though it’s unlikely anyone would doubt it at this stage in her career, save those too young to have listened to mid-90s radio).

The opening track, “Give,” starts off with a creepy, anticipatory beat, eventually leading us to Amos’ voice singing, “So you’ve heard I’ve crossed over the line / Do I have regrets? / Well, not yet.” Her voice soon soars into a high tilting tone — a spot-on impression of Portishead. This compelling number brings to mind frightening walks alone in dark woods, and is the hook that pulls the listener into a compelling and dramatic album that circulates around the skill and appeal of her earlier works. “Fire To Your Plain” is pleasingly dramatic, rife with religion-tinged imagery and powerful drum beats that hit home. “Not Dying Today” changes direction suddenly, adding brightness and optimism to an upbeat refrain and transforming what began as a dark, noir-like record.

As far as albums go, this one runs a bit long, boasting 17 tracks in an era where you’re lucky to get 11. Arguably, a few tracks (such as the less-powerful “Mary Jane”) could have been trimmed and set aside for a bonus disc for the more die-hard fans. But rather, these tracks could be seen as breathers — spots of contemplation and calm between the real heavy-hitters, and so many tracks crammed on to one album makes it a bargain for those who still purchase entire albums, instead of joining together singles piecemeal from iTunes.

As a whole, some listeners may be put off by the fact that Abnormally Attracted To Sin covers so much breadth, rather than going for the singular tone and concept that marked Amos’ earlier works. However, the variety pack method works well for her, and she seems to have finally returned to the same intense creativity that filled her earlier works so readily.

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